Wood Card: Distinctly Natural Credit Card

Introducing the Thales Gemalto Wood Card – a fresh addition to our more eco-friendly payment card family, designed for banks ready to reclaim their innovative edge and offer a unique product to discerning premium customers. 

Wave goodbye to the plastic of yesteryear and say hello to the warm embrace of more sustainably sourced wood.  

This wooden card isn't just any card in your customer's wallet; it's a conversation starter, a statement of green ethos, and a nod to the refined tastes of premium users. 

Keep reading to discover how the Thales Gemalto Wood Card is planting seeds of change in the payment world, one payment at a time, offering an opportunity for banks to differentiate.  

Differentiate with the wood card’s subtle Eco-Prestige 

The Wood Card is an asset for banks to strengthen their brand, demonstrating their commitment to the environment while catering to premium customers' tastes.  

It's a market-proven product that affirms a bank's role as a leader in more sustainable innovation.  

The result? 

With each card featuring individual colours and patterns, banks can offer their customers a premium product that is as distinctive as more eco-friendly.

There's more.  

Elevating the Premium User Experience 

The premium segment is not just about exclusivity but about aligning with customer values.  

The Wood Card meets this shift with fine engraving that provides an unmatched tactile experience, unlike any traditional payment card.  

• It embodies a statement of eco-responsibility and premium taste. 
• The Wood Card is designed to endure, preserving its functionality and aesthetics. 
• It supports all payment types, including contactless, contact, and magstripe, ensuring convenience without compromising security or performance. 
• Visa and MasterCard certifications underline its reliability and global acceptance. The card's full compliance with ISO, EMV, and payment industry standards ensures a seamless integration into existing financial ecosystems. 

An exclusive and highly attractive card for consumers

 The wood is perceived as 2 times more premium than other recycled or bio-sourced materials by consumers. It is perceived as unique and creates a real attraction for consumers, especially with engraving. 65% of consumers are ready to pay above 50% more for the wood card than for a plastic card. The 100% wood card body comes as the first criterion and is largely preferred by affluent consumers who do not regularly carry out actions in favour of the environment. It is also expected to be accompanied by bank’s environmental initiatives and services.

So, to me this looks very elegant and smart. And then I read the back, and it says it's the first plastic-free payment wood hard body worldwide. And I immediately prefer it to the plastic ones.  UK consumer

Thales conducted qualitative consumer market research in October 2023 with hands-on testing of sustainable cards in France, the UK, Sweden, the USA, Singapore and Brazil.

 Features for Banks Issuing Thales Gemalto Wood Card 

In today's eco-conscious marketplace, the Wood Card is an innovation opportunity for banks aiming to demonstrate a commitment to sustainability and appeal to premium clients who value environmental responsibility and exclusivity. 

It features:  

• 0% plastic body made from real wood  

• Each card crafted from 100% wood from FSC-certified forests 

• Guaranteeing more environmentally responsible payments

• A proven track record  

Each wood credit card is unique: a talking point, serving as a subtle marketing tool for the bank to attract and retain the premium clientele.  

But there's another reason why cardholders will treasure their Wood Card: its uniqueness.  

Much like the individual beauty of trees in a forest, no two Wood Cards are alike.  

Each card is a masterpiece of nature, with its own distinctive grain and hue, ensuring that every cardholder carries a personal token of sustainability.

Nature's touch in finance: The distinct Thales Gemalto Wood Card. (Image by Dall-E) 

 Tailored for Sustainability: The Individuality of These Wooden Credit Cards 

In a world of climate change and resource depletion, the Wood Card represents a tangible step towards more sustainable practices in the payment industry.  

With responsible harvesting, the production of Wood Cards contributes to higher annual volume growth of trees and a greater capacity for CO2 storage.   

The Wood Card's impact extends beyond responsible sourcing.  

• Its carbon footprint is potentially smaller than traditional PVC cards, with a complete Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) currently underway to provide definitive data.  

• The card's body is fully bio-sourced, containing only wood, paper, and bio-adhesive, which reduces environmental impact at the end of its life cycle. 

• It removes the high toxicity of plastic components, with 0% plastic. 

 
Addressing Eco-Concerns: The Sustainable Story of Wood Card 

Customer feedback on the Thales Gemalto Wood Card has been overwhelmingly positive.  

Our first adopters are pleasantly surprised by the exceptional quality of the card, noting its durability and premium feel.  

However, we understand the concerns about the environmental implications of using wood. The card's journey from a responsibly harvested tree to your customer's wallet and eventually back to the earth as compost is a seamless cycle, mirroring a forest ecosystem's natural ebb and flow. By choosing the Thales Gemalto Wood Card, banks and their customers are part of a solution that supports sustainable forest management and contributes to the fight against climate change.

It is like opting for a renewable energy source over fossil fuel; it's a step towards perpetuating natural abundance.

From Vision to Reality: The Thales Gemalto Wood Card in Action 

The Thales Gemalto Wood Card isn't just a concept—it's a reality already gaining traction in the market. We proudly stand as the most advanced company globally in  more sustainable card solutions.  

The early success of the Wood Card underlines its market readiness and the appetite for more sustainable products.  

Our collaboration with early adopters has resulted in valuable insights, allowing us to refine the offering to meet the specific needs of premium payment customers.  

By choosing Thales and the Wood Card, banks are not just adopting a product but embracing a proven solution and a partner with unmatched expertise in the field. 

Now it's your turn. 

Are you interested in learning more about the Thales Gemalto Wood Card and our more eco-friendly practices? 

We'd love to share how we're contributing to a greener future.  

Please get in touch with us, and let's explore how you can be a part of this sustainable journey and elevate your position in the premium payment market.